Keeping count of an animal now has an app, and that app could help koala conservation.
If you’ve ever needed a reason to look up on your next walk in bushland, there might be an app you can log your viewings in. Australia’s national science agency, the CSIRO, has released something for iOS and Android to help anyone in the country track koalas for the sake of conservation efforts.
It’s been just over two years since koala populations were officially listed as endangered, and since then, the CSIRO has been working to track and monitor populations of the adorable critters, working with a government program to improve their numbers.
The latest effort comes in the form of the Koala Spotter app, an aspect of citizen science that sees regular people cast their gaze to the trees, look for a koala, record the location, and if you can, snap a photo.
“Koalas can be difficult to spot from the ground, and as they are most active at night, they often rest high in trees during the day,” said Dr Andrew Hoskins, Quantitative Biologist at the CSIRO.
“To count the species, scientists have been using thermal drones to spot koalas from above, deploying acoustic recorders in the field and detection dogs, conducting scat analysis, while also carrying out systematic visual surveys and data integration from previous and historic sources,” he said.
“We need as many different eyes as possible to help paint the most accurate picture of koala numbers and distribution across the country.”
The Koala Spotter app isn’t a drone, but is an app for iPhone and Android that is helping the CSIRO’s National Koala Monitoring Program track koala numbers. The current estimate sits between 224,000 and 524,000, with a new estimate due in March next year. According to the CSIRO, 730 records have been contributed by the app so far, with more citizen scientists popping up with its use.
“Most of the data we’ve gotten from the app so far has come from families and children,” said Dr. Hoskins.
“It’s very easy to use, and the data provided is fed straight into the National Koala Monitoring Program If you spot a koala simply record its location in the app, try and snap a photo if possible, and press ‘done’.”
